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Rasmussen College’s Graphic Design Blog: “The Best of the Best”

Last night, Identityworks’ Tony Spaeth forwarded an email to the Identity Forum contributors (myself included) that he had received from Rasmussen College in Minnesota:

Sent: Thursday, April 07, 2011
To: forum@identityworks.com
Subject: You’re Featured on the Rasmussen College Blog

Hi there, Tony and team:

I just wanted to notify you that your awesome graphic design blog was featured in a recent article published by Rasmussen College.

The article is found here: Graphic Design Blogs: The Best of the Best.

The article was written by one of our School of Technology and Design faculty.

Congrats, and feel free to promote the article through your social networks and blog.

Well, of course, it is always nice to receive recognition, but even better to hear that our modus operandi of promoting ‘identity’ as a business tool through education channels is continuing to gain momentum.

Here is the College Blog’s accompanying introduction:

Sometimes the simplest projects are the most difficult ones. Identity design may seem simple to non-designers, but anyone within this field knows that the arduous task of capturing a brand’s entire essence within one small icon is no easy feat. This forum provides articles and thought-provoking arguments from the best in the field of logo design. Learn from the trials and tribulations of the masters.

DD

Risky Business: Organisations who ‘changed face’ in an attempt to distance themselves from catastrophe, ill feeling, bad association or a tarnished reputation.

The Bhopal Gas Tragedy

Not forgetting, the world’s worst industrial catastrophe in 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal, India. Killing plant staff and thousands of people in surrounding residential areas, UCIL subsequently renamed, and became Eveready Industries India Ltd. (EIIL) — adopting the Eveready ‘Nine Lives’ identity.

ENRON

Arthur Andersen, the once ‘Big Five’ accountancy firm, was directly linked to the ENRON scandal. In 2001, when legally forced to change its name, spin-off business Andersen Consulting rebranded to become Accenture.

The Government Bailouts

In an attempt to avoid disaster, resulting from the US Government financial bailout episode this year, AIG (American International Group) went through various iterations and streamlining spin-off exercises, one of which became Chartis.

Blackwater!

Blackwater was/is a private military contractor linked to the shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians in Baghdad, 2007. Blackwater rebranded to become Xe. Enough said!

Poor Health

In 2003, amidst financially difficulties and public identification exclusively with tobacco, Phillip Morris (who owned 84% of Kraft Foods) rebranded to become Altria, demoting “Phillip Morris” to subsidiary status.

The ValuJet Airline Disaster

In 1996, whilst en route from Miami to Atlanta. a ValuJet Flight crashed killing passengers and civilians. Having had its credibility destroyed, the American budget airline was forced in to merging with AirTran Airways — adopting its name and identity.

MCI. MCI Worldcom. Worldcom. MCI

In 1997 MCI communications and Worldcom announced their US$37 billion merger. Following a much larger, US$129 billion, merger with Sprint Corporation in 1999, MCI Worldcom became Worldcom. In the wake of bankruptcy and accountancy scandal in 2002, it later became MCI.

Source: Is the ‘Helios’ destined for the scrap heap? on Identity Forum